The first period of Thursday’s game between the Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre seemed to take forever to finish. First there was a lengthy review after Dylan DeMelo put the puck in Detroit’s net, which prompted the Wings to challenge goaltender interference. That went well enough, as officials ruled Drake Batherson had interfered with Howard.

Then came a penalty to the Wings. But to which player?

“Penalty on Wings No. 9” came the first announcement.

“I started laughing,” Howard said. “That was a little weird.”

That number, of course, hangs from the Wings’ rafters in celebration of legendary Wings forward Gordie Howe. He played his last game in a Wings uniform in 1971, and passed away in 2016 at age 88.